1591 réponses à ce sujet

[CDR Aedan Cousland]

Apologies if a thread like this was already made once upon a time.

 

Why do female Inquisitors have six romance options (negating race-gating) to choose from, while male Inquisitors have only four?

 

Is it because of the whole "Cullen and Egg were initially going to be bisexual" thing, but when Bioware pansied out of it/"didn't have enough time," they didn't realize that now there's an unbalanced amount of potential LI's per sex?

 

Females have Josie, Ser-ugh, Irritable Bowel IB, Beardy, Egg, and Cullen. That's six.

 

Males have Dorian ( ), Cassie, Josie, and IB. That's four. And I'm not counting Harding for obvious reasons, but even if I did, females would still have two more options than men do.

 

I understand that had Bioware not backed out (like a punk) of making Cullen and Egg romanceable to men, a lot of players would be fanny-troubled over having more gay options for their men than straight, but still. (As an unnecessary aside: I would be quite happy, as I always play gay heroes anyway. Well, I'd be happy to have Cullen, not so much Egg, but at least I have Dorian. If IB was the only male romance option for my Inquisitor, he would be a very sad and lonely man. Much like my poor Aedan was pre-Awakening.)

 

So, um, anyway... opinions?

 

PS: Sorry if I slandered your chosen romances' "good names," but... Well, no, actually that's about all I've got. And I'm not really even that sorry, tee-hee!

[coldflame]

First, and I really want to see where this thread is going.

[CDR Aedan Cousland]

First, and I really want to see where this thread is going.

 

So do I. It's a shame I made this thread at one in the morning.

 

I'd like to see everyone's thoughts on this and discussions about ways to effectively alleviate this problem. Bonus points if the solution somehow manages to give most of the players what they want within reason. Of course, I know it won't be attended to in this game. Bioware's not interested in fixing their choice-based mistakes. But, perhaps it can be something kept in mind for a future installment.

[BraveVesperia]

I don't have any theories about why, though since ME was tipped in favour of straight men, it's interesting to see DA tipped in favour of straight women. Ideally I'd like everyone to have the same amount of options. Except for bisexuals of course, we automatically get more regardless of how it's carved up.

 

I assume they decided that considering the size of Cullen's fan following, it was a 'now or never' thing for him being an LI. I do think it's a shame Solas wasn't bi. Race-gating to elves is perfect for him, but widening that option to include both male and female elves would've made him a bit less... niche?

[Domiel Angelus]

Apologies if a thread like this was already made once upon a time.

 

Why do female Inquisitors have six romance options (negating race-gating) to choose from, while male Inquisitors have only four?

 

Is it because of the whole "Cullen and Egg were initially going to be bisexual" thing, but when Bioware pansied out of it/"didn't have enough time," they didn't realize that now there's an unbalanced amount of potential LI's per sex?

 

Females have Josie, Ser-ugh, Irritable Bowel IB, Beardy, Egg, and Cullen. That's six.

 

Males have Dorian ( ), Cassie, Josie, and IB. That's four. And I'm not counting Harding for obvious reasons, but even if I did, females would still have two more options than men do.

 

I understand that had Bioware not backed out (like a punk) of making Cullen and Egg romanceable to men, a lot of players would be fanny-troubled over having more gay options for their men than straight, but still. (As an unnecessary aside: I would be quite happy, as I always play gay heroes anyway. Well, I'd be happy to have Cullen, not so much Egg, but at least I have Dorian. If IB was the only male romance option for my Inquisitor, he would be a very sad and lonely man. Much like my poor Aedan was pre-Awakening.)

 

So, um, anyway... opinions?

 

PS: Sorry if I slandered your chosen romances' "good names," but... Well, no, actually that's about all I've got. And I'm not really even that sorry, tee-hee!

 

Here's one for you, female elves actually get six. Solas will only romance elves, Cullen is Human/Elves romance-able.

 

This means female elves actually get the most options at six, that leaves humans with five and dwarves/qunari with four. Its rather backhanded considering the only female elf is only romance-able by female protagonists. I don't have a problem with them having a female only and a male only option, but men got a race neutral option with a human (humans known to bang everything that moves similar to dragons in D&D) where women got an elf, a supposed dying race and they made her the lesbian. Also all of the male protagonist romances have no gating whatsoever, there are no elf/dwarf/qunari male only LI. 

 

Based on Sera's back-story the fact that she goes after only women is kind of wrong considering how she felt about her 'keeper', if anything she's a bit more backwards after learning her background. It was a human woman that made her hate cookies and helped foster her hatred of the baker. Just a bit of observation there. 

[Panda]

I think the reason is because Bioware added two romances late, Solases and Cullens which were meant to be available for both sexes, but they ran out of time or it didn't fit their characters or maybe little of both. I don't still know. And it seems like there wasn't female character within advisors and companions Bioware could have added romance for, in terms of story they had thought about for those characters. Like Vivi has lover and Leliana might have one. There is also lot less female companions compared to male companions so there isn't as much options to choose to make LI from. So I think those are the reasons.

[CDR Aedan Cousland]

I don't have any theories about why, though since ME was tipped in favour of straight men, it's interesting to see DA tipped in favour of straight women. Ideally I'd like everyone to have the same amount of options. Except for bisexuals of course, we automatically get more regardless of how it's carved up.

 

I assume they decided that considering the size of Cullen's fan following, it was a 'now or never' thing for him being an LI. I do think it's a shame Solas wasn't bi. Race-gating to elves is perfect for him, but widening that option to include both male and female elves would've made him a bit less... niche?

 

I remember reading about how Cullen's male romance was being developed, but then Bioware just stopped because of reasons. I also remember reading about how Egg allegedly didn't "fit" as a bisexual, and that he somehow worked better being a straight guy. He's not my thing, but I know a lot of people were disappointed anyway.

 

I'm open to any ideas on ways around this, to avoid it in the future, etc. Some sexuality changes, new characters (including character replacement), and so on. The sky's the limit!

[CDR Aedan Cousland]

I think the reason is because Bioware added two romances late, Solases and Cullens which were meant to be available for both sexes, but they ran out of time or it didn't fit their characters or maybe little of both. I don't still know. And it seems like there wasn't female character within advisors and companions Bioware could have added romance for, in terms of story they had thought about for those characters. Like Vivi has lover and Leliana might have one. There is also lot less female companions compared to male companions so there isn't as much options to choose to make LI from. So I think those are the reasons.

 

That's sadly true. All in all, I don't think Bioware thought ahead well enough. But they also didn't when it came to Mass Effect LI's, either.

[Grieving Natashina]

I think the reason is because Bioware added two romances late, Solases and Cullens which were meant to be available for both sexes, but they ran out of time or it didn't fit their characters or maybe little of both. I don't still know. And it seems like there wasn't female character within advisors and companions Bioware could have added romance for, in terms of story they had thought about for those characters. Like Vivi has lover and Leliana might have one. There is also lot less female companions compared to male companions so there isn't as much options to choose to make LI from. So I think those are the reasons.

That's how I feel as well.  Personally, I'm fine with more options for straight men in the next game.  I would prefer things to be as equal as possible, but if straight men got an extra option in the next game I wouldn't care.  Maybe that could mean more than three lady party members to choose from.  I remember my own complaints about that one.

 

BW "Strong female characters like the Divine!"

Me: "Isn't she dead in the first few minutes?"

BW: "Strong female characters like the grand enchanter Fiona!"

Me: "You mean the lady the writing team made look like a total moron?"

BW: "Strong female characters, like the Empress!"

Me: "You mean the lady that I can replace with her cousin?  A lady no one outside of the EU has heard more than a passing mention of?"

BW: "Strong female characters, like Briala!"
Me: "She's barely on-screen and she didn't exist until TME."

BW: "That doesn't matter! You have strong female characters, you don't need another female party member."

Me: "...."

[Domiel Angelus]

I don't have any theories about why, though since ME was tipped in favour of straight men, it's interesting to see DA tipped in favour of straight women. Ideally I'd like everyone to have the same amount of options. Except for bisexuals of course, we automatically get more regardless of how it's carved up.

 

I assume they decided that considering the size of Cullen's fan following, it was a 'now or never' thing for him being an LI. I do think it's a shame Solas wasn't bi. Race-gating to elves is perfect for him, but widening that option to include both male and female elves would've made him a bit less... niche?

 

Okay, ME 1 had one male, one female and one switch hitter, ME 2 had 3 male, 3 female and 3 non-romance romance options, ME 3 had 5 male, 5 female, 3 bisexual and 2 non-romance romance options. Three of the male options must be carried from two to three, two female must be carried over and if you wanted to romance Kelly or Samara it must be carried over. Plus in ME3 if you don't complete a romance with Miranda from ME 2 to 3 she dies, Jack can die, Morinth is guaranteed to die and get converted into a banshee; the only female option that has a death is Thane but it was expected and he gets to be amazing before it. I'm not including deaths on the suicide mission because I'm certain everyone played that part 30+ times to make sure their people survived, and I'm not including the ME3's end because when one of your people dies at the end its usually with the death of the planet they're standing on. They unlocked Vega and Javik for the romances when you get the Citadel DLC, that's why they come up to 5. 

 

Females sort of win out there as well, the only downside women got from the second game to the third is Jacob breaks it off without so much as a comm call and gets another woman pregnant if you romanced him.

 

EDIT: Also Tali can kill herself if you allow the Geth to be upgraded before everything is perfect, and second mark here is she can decide she's not ready to settle down and kick you to the curb if you don't play it all perfectly as well. So double shot to the fun-bag

[Char]

I believe Cullen was intended to be bi, but lack of time meant only the ladies version was finished. Solas was just added for optional development, and hinges a bit on the whole "eleven repopulating" thing. I'd certainly feel better if Cullen had been bi, would be fairer that way, and nice to see BW break type and have a male warrior go for the gents.
But I won't pretend I'm not delighted to have so much choice after ME3 (thankfully I can't play without going for Garrus in 2) and I would be really disappointed had I been stuck with Blackwall and IB as my only options. I thought IB's was quite sweet but I'm not submissive in the slightest and I'm not greatly keen on identity theft either so Blackwall isn't making my heart list either.

So yeah, no idea on the thought process, and I am sorry they weren't equally available.

[CDR Aedan Cousland]

Here's one for you, female elves actually get six. Solas will only romance elves, Cullen is Human/Elves romance-able.

 

This means female elves actually get the most options at six, that leaves humans with five and dwarves/qunari with four. Its rather backhanded considering the only female elf is only romance-able by female protagonists. I don't have a problem with them having a female only and a male only option, but men got a race neutral option with a human (humans known to bang everything that moves similar to dragons in D&D) where women got an elf, a supposed dying race and they made her the lesbian. Also all of the male protagonist romances have no gating whatsoever, there are no elf/dwarf/qunari male only LI. 

 

Based on Sera's back-story the fact that she goes after only women is kind of wrong considering how she felt about her 'keeper', if anything she's a bit more backwards after learning her background. It was a human woman that made her hate cookies and helped foster her hatred of the baker. Just a bit of observation there. 

 

Indeed. I think if they'd given male characters race-gated options, it would have constrained their options even more than they already are. Two fewer options than females plus race-gating? Imagine the rage.

 

Also, I've thought up an obsolete idea (given that it's DAI-related), but a quick, simple solution would be to completely remove Egg and either IB or Beardy as romance options, then make both Cullen and Cassie (and Beardy if IB is removed instead) bisexual. Everyone then has the same amount of straight choices and non-straight choices on either side. Contrived, but it'd work, I suppose. Still an obsolete suggestion though, lol.

[Char]

Okay, ME 1 had one male, one female and one switch hitter, ME 2 had 3 male, 3 female and 3 non-romance romance options, ME 3 had 5 male, 5 female, 3 bisexual and 2 non-romance romance options. Three of the male options must be carried from two to three, two female must be carried over and if you wanted to romance Kelly or Samara it must be carried over. Plus in ME3 if you don't complete a romance with Miranda from ME 2 to 3 she dies, Jack can die, Morinth is guaranteed to die and get converted into a banshee; the only female option that has a death is Thane but it was expected and he gets to be amazing before it. They unlocked Vega and Javik for the romances when you get the Citadel DLC, thats why they come up to 5. 
 
Females sort of win out there as well, the only downside women got from the second game to the third is Jacob breaks it off without so much as a comm call and gets another woman pregnant if you romanced him.

Whoa there!
Jacob cheats, Thane dies, Garrus is only available if romanced in 2, and Kaidan can be left on Virmire and so not there.
Also, please don't ever call Vega a romance option getting people hammered in order to sleep with them whilst they repeatedly tell you they don't really want to is not at all romance in my eyes.

[Grieving Natashina]

Whoa there!
Jacob cheats, Thane dies, Garrus is only available if romanced in 2, and Kaidan can be left on Virmire and so not there.
Also, please don't ever call Vega a romance option getting people hammered in order to sleep with them whilst they repeatedly tell you they don't really want to is not at all romance in my eyes.

That's right up there with people telling me that Javik was a romance option.

[Felya87]

Okay, ME 1 had one male, one female and one switch hitter, ME 2 had 3 male, 3 female and 3 non-romance romance options, ME 3 had 5 male, 5 female, 3 bisexual and 2 non-romance romance options. Three of the male options must be carried from two to three, two female must be carried over and if you wanted to romance Kelly or Samara it must be carried over. Plus in ME3 if you don't complete a romance with Miranda from ME 2 to 3 she dies, Jack can die, Morinth is guaranteed to die and get converted into a banshee; the only female option that has a death is Thane but it was expected and he gets to be amazing before it. I'm not including deaths on the suicide mission because I'm certain everyone played that part 30+ times to make sure their people survived. They unlocked Vega and Javik for the romances when you get the Citadel DLC, that's why they come up to 5. 

 

Females sort of win out there as well, the only downside women got from the second game to the third is Jacob breaks it off without so much as a comm call and gets another woman pregnant if you romanced him.

 

EDIT: Also Tali can kill herself if you allow the Geth to be upgraded before everything is perfect, and second mark here is she can decide she's not ready to settle down and kick you to the curb if you don't play it all perfectly as well. So double shot to the fun-bag

 

Miranda is alive and well in ME3 if you just talk to her and let her use some resource from the alliance. Jack just need to be loyal to be alive. Jacob cheat no matter what, Thane dies, Vega have to be drunk to sleep with Sheprd, and is in way a romance. Is just a anight fling, and is sickening how you have tu use alcool to convince him.

[Domiel Angelus]

Whoa there!
Jacob cheats, Thane dies, Garrus is only available if romanced in 2, and Kaidan can be left on Virmire and so not there.
Also, please don't ever call Vega a romance option getting people hammered in order to sleep with them whilst they repeatedly tell you they don't really want to is not at all romance in my eyes.

 

Yes, and Jack, Miranda, Kelly, Tali and Samara all require you to romance them in the previous game. You get horribly penalized for swaying in your emotions as well. See my edits. 

[Felya87]

Yes, and Jack, Miranda, Kelly, Tali and Samara all require you to romance them in the previous game. You get horribly penalized for swaying in your emotions as well. See my edits. 

Same for Garrus, the only LI that stay fairthful/don't die.

[Char]

That's right up there with people telling me that Javik was a romance option.

I never got the DLC for him, so never realised there could be a potential scene so I didnt feel qualified to comment on him all I can say is I felt unclean after someone showed me the youtube vid for Vega's citadel scenes. Exploitative doesnt quite cover it, whoever thought that up needs counselling

[CDR Aedan Cousland]

Let's not forget a gay male Shepard, who must remain celibate for the first two games!

[Felya87]

I never got the DLC for him, so never realised there could be a potential scene so I didnt feel qualified to comment on him all I can say is I felt unclean after someone showed me the youtube vid for Vega's citadel scenes. Exploitative doesnt quite cover it, whoever thought that up needs counselling

 

Javik is almost as much. Waking up with hinted you have bedded him can't be considered romance in any way. 

[Char]

Javik is almost as much. Waking up with hinted you have bedded him can't be considered romance in any way. 

Yikes. Waking up with someone you don't remember having slept with... Poor FemShep, I'm so glad they didn't do anything stupid to Garrus... The Citadel tango scene is awesome

[Grieving Natashina]

Javik is almost as much. Waking up with hinted you have bedded him can't be considered romance in any way. 

Javik: "I see there is one thing that primitives are good at."

Shep: "Not one word."

 

For those that haven't played the ME series, this is Javik.  Which BioWare made into a possible drunken hookup for a single FemShep in ME3's Citadel DLC.  Oh and without the player being given a choice about it either.  Shep can at least ask Vega in a conversation.

Spoiler

 

 

Yikes. Waking up with someone you don't remember having slept with... Poor FemShep, I'm so glad they didn't do anything stupid to Garrus... The Citadel tango scene is awesome 

Nerd alert: I've changed my Shep's hair to one of the longer modded hairstyles just for that tango scene before. 

[Char]

Let's not forget a gay male Shepard, who must remain celibate for the first two games!

Why they didn't do something for gay male gamers before that is beyond me, and Garrus would have made an awesome option for both Sheps IMHO (I think everyone deserves a Garrus )

[Panda]

Yes, and Jack, Miranda, Kelly, Tali and Samara all require you to romance them in the previous game. You get horribly penalized for swaying in your emotions as well. See my edits. 

 

Actually male Shepard has 3 options for sure in ME3. Liara, Steve and Kaidan/Ashley. If your male Shepard is straight at least 1 option, if gay at least 1 option depending on Kaidan/Ashley situation.

 

Female Shepard has 2 for sure, Liara and Samantha. If your female Shepard is straight she can have 0 options and this is what I have problem with ME3 options.

[Felya87]

Garrus is great  and the tango scene is funny and lovely. He is really what save my female shepard in ME3.

 

I agree would have been cute for gay males have the chance to romance him too. Or there should have been something for them prior ME3. 

But I can't be grateful enought to have Garrus in ME as a romance.